PLAYLIST: Happy Lover's Day

Oh the love song. A good one can reduce you to tears; a bad one can too, but only because you've lost all hope in humanity's emotional response. Unfortunately, there seems to be no end to the bad ones in the world today, so I offer this little helping of some that I think are pretty good. Enjoy. UPDATE: So apparently Blogger deemed this post unsuitable and removed it. I took down the mp3's, but if you still want a .zip of the playlist just shoot us an email at whaleinacubicle@gmail.com.

mp3: The Bird and the Bee - My Love
from the album Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future (iTunes)
These two do indie-pop love songs right, and I think they know it. For further examples, see last year's Valentine's EP, One Too Many Hearts.

mp3: Josh Ritter - Kathleen
from the album Hello Starling (iTunes)
Josh has mastered the love song in my opinion, and he's got more than a few great ones. This is from his 2003 album, Hello Starling, and you should love it - if not only for its opening line, "All the other girls here are stars, you are the northern lights!" Favorite.

mp3: Leona Naess - On My Mind
from the album Thirteens (iTunes)
This one's been stuck in my head for a couple of months now, and I think it's one of the cutest little love songs I've ever heard. Yep, I said that.

mp3: Landon Pigg - Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop
from the Coffee Shop EP (iTunes)
A little cornball, for sure. But the melody is pretty, and I really like the dream-like production.

mp3: M. Ward - Never Had Nobody Like You
from the album Hold Time (listen to it at NPR)
I'm a sucker for M. Ward's dusty ballads, and it seems like his song-writing might be getting a little less cryptic since pairing with the She (of She & Him), and possibly even a little more... romantic? You be the judge, but I think this is a pretty good casual-love-song, if that's such a thing. It's off his newest album, Hold Time (out in March).

mp3: Joshua James - You're the Cocaine
(iTunes)
I fear this might become a lost gem due to its exclusion from last years re-release of The Sun is Always Brighter - it's a tender ode to his wife that makes me a little teary-eyed just about every time I hear it. While the lyrics are pretty sweet, I think it's his delivery that really gets me.

mp3: The Submarines - Swimming Pool
from the album Honeysuckle Weeks (iTunes)
Ok, I just love this song. And the fact that these two are married and singing it together? I mean, c'mon. That's pretty adorable.

mp3: Mason Jennings - In Your City
from the album In The Ever (iTunes)
I love this little vignette, and the old-timey piano is the perfect backdrop. While it's not your typical love song, it's one of the most romantic songs I can think of.